Iran Puts Protesters on Trial

By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 1, 2009 5:46 AM CDT
Iran Puts Protesters on Trial
In this photo released by the semi-official Iranian Fars News Agency, defendants sit at a court room in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Aug. 1, 2009. Opposition political activists and protesters stood trial in Tehran Saturday on charges of rioting and conspiring against the ruling system in the country's first...   (Hossein Salehi Ara)

More than 100 opposition protesters are in court in Tehran today on charges of rioting and conspiring against the ruling system in the country's first trial following the disputed presidential election, the AP reports. The trial underlines the government's efforts to bring to a close anti-government demonstrations that have persisted since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner.

The defendants face charges that include attacking military and government buildings, having links with armed opposition groups and conspiring against the ruling system, Iran's official news agency, IRNA, reported. Among the defendants are several prominent reformist opposition activists; the opposition maintains Ahmadinejad stole the vote from opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi by engaging in massive fraud. Meanwhile, the anti-regime protests have continued with thousands of protesters Thursday holding a memorial at a Tehran cemetery to commemorate those killed in the crackdown.  (More Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stories.)

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